Research note: Complying with frustration, the experience of equality and diversity practitioners

The Equality and Diversity (E&D) role in Higher Education (HE) in the UK ensures that universities are compliant with equalities legislation and that they fulfil their duty to promote equality as these relate to employees and the institution as a whole. Hunter and Swan (2007) call for more research to explore how equality and diversity practitioners handle these complex and contradictory (E&D) duties (Healy et al, 2010). We also argue that, as the UK university context itself faces severe financial challenges, understanding the experiences of HE E&D practitioners/managers becomes more urgent. The purpose of the research is to explain the experience of equality practitioners in the HE context, an under-explored area of equality practice. Meyerson and Scully’s concept (1995) of the ‘tempered radical’ has been used to give us greater insight into how the challenges of this role are played out in the HE context

Large-Scale RNAi Screen to Identify Genes Involved in Axon Guidance in Caenorhabditis elegans

Diese Arbeit wurde durchgeführt, um Gene, die axonale Wegfindung im Nervensystem von Caenorhabditis elegans steuern, zu identifizieren. C. elegans stellt aufgrund seiner einzigartigen physiologischen Eigenschaften ein gutes Modellsystem für das Studium einer Vielzahl biologischer Prozesse dar. Das Nervensystem von C. elegans ist einfach strukturiert und umfasst 302 Neuronen. Diese Neuronen bilden stereotype Netzwerke mit ihren anterior-posterior und dorsal-ventral verlaufenden axonalen Fortsätzen aus. In dieser Arbeit nutzen wir die kürzlich beschriebene Methode der RNA Interferenz (RNAi) im Wurm zur Identifikation von neuen Genen der axonalen Wegfindung. Allerdings ist das Nervensystem von C. elegans resistent gegen systemische RNAi und Transport von doppelsträngigen RNA Molekülen in benachbarte nicht-neuronale Zellen veranlasst keine neuronale RNAi. Aus diesem Grund begannen wir mit der Identifizierung von C. elegans Mutanten, die eine erhöhte Empfindlichkeit für RNAi im Nervensystem aufweisen. Eine chemische Mutagenese wurde durchgeführt, gefolgt von einem Screen nach Mutanten mit effizienter RNAi im Nervensystem. Eine der Mutanten (nre-1, für neuronal RNAi efficient) zeigte starke Suppression der Genexpression im Nervensystem nach RNAi durch Füttern. Wir nutzten die nre-1 supersensitive Mutante für einen revers genetischen Screen zur Idenfizierung von Genen der axonalen Wegfindung in C. elegans. Um die Fortsätze der Nervenzellen sichtbar zu machen, wurde ein transgener Stamm im nre-1 Hintergrund erzeugt, in dem ein Teil der Inter- und Motoneurone durch gelb fluoreszierendes Protein (YFP) markiert ist. Dieser Stamm wurde für einen Screen von 2416 Genen auf Chromosom I verwendet. Dazu wurde eine library von Bakterienklonen, die einem bestimmten Gen entsprechende dsRNA exprimieren, an C. elegans verfüttert. Der Screen führte zur Identifizierung von 57 Kandidatengenen, die penetrante axonale Wegfindungsdefekte in Motoneuron-Kommissuren und Axonen des Ventralstrangs in C. elegans zur Folge haben. Die identifizierten Gene sind involviert in eine Vielzahl von biologischen Prozessen wie DNA-Metabolismus, Translation, Transkription und Signaltransduktion. Einige kodieren für Zelloberflächenmoleküle und Zytoskelettkomponenten. Zusätzlich zu neuen Genen konnten im Screen Gene identifiziert werden, die in andere biologische Prozesse involviert sind, aber bis jetzt nicht mit axonaler Wegfindung in Verbindung gebracht wurden. Beispielsweise führt Verlust von pry-1, einem Axin Homolog in C. elegans, zu axonalen Defekten. Axin ist ein assoziierter Faktor des ß-Catenin Komplexes und damit ein negativer Regulator in Wnt vermittelter Signaltransduktion. Weitere Studien an anderen, in diesem Screen identifizierten Kandidatengenen wie z.B. neuen Rezeptoren, Signalmolekülen, Kinasen und Transkriptionsfaktoren können uns in Zukunft einen weiteren Einblick in die molekularen Mechanismen der axonalen Wegfindung geben

The partnership experiment: changing employee relations in the National Health Service : examining the viability of partnership between management, trade unions and the workforce

A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Bedfordshire.Partnership has enjoyed fresh attention since the 1990s and consequently is a growing yet increasingly fragmented area of research. With the incoming Labour Government in 1997, policy has aimed to replace conflict with co-operation in employee relations. Partnership is an approach to managing the employment relationship based on the search for common ground between management, employees and their representatives and involves the development of long-term relationships built on high levels of trust and respect. Approaches to, and models of, partnership are still at a formative stage with no consensus on how partnership develops effectively. Despite the recognition that to understand partnership fully the study of the processes involved is necessary, little is known about these processes involved. Furthermore, the current body of literature on partnership in a UK context is limited in terms of its theoretical basis. The research set out to identify through which theoretical mechanisms partnership works. Informed by social exchange theory, the study examines the viability of partnership within the NHS and attempts to understand the conditions for its successful development. Two stages of empirical research using a mainly qualitative design were conducted. The first stage of fieldwork involved a preliminary investigation of the introduction of partnership in the National Health Service. The aim of this stage was to trace the introduction of partnership and to understand its antecedents and what had set out to achieve using data from eleven in depth interviews with key players at national, regional and local levels throughout the service. Stage two followed a case study approach and investigated the development of partnership in four NHS Acute Trusts. This stage involved a range of techniques (i.e. semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and documentation) examining the views of fifty five respondents from management and trade union representatives across the four Trusts and used data from 543 questionnaires to investigate employee's experiences of partnership. The study contributes to the partnership literature on the developmental processes of partnerships by utilising social exchange theory to better understand the viability of partnership. In particular, examining partnership from a social exchange perspective enabled a deeper understanding of the decision processes involved when deciding whether to co-operate. The study demonstrates that the theory (and its related concepts) can be helpful in examining the viability of partnership in understanding the mechanisms that lead to its successful development and the maintenance of the relationship over time. In assessing the viability of partnership, the thesis identifies the conditions under which partnership produces its effects and demonstrates how these differed in terms of changes in both the climate and the behaviour and attitudes of participants. In sum, the idea of social exchange would seem to provide an underpinning rationale for partnership. Some support for a new and expanding role for the trade union involving jOint work in developing policies was found. Trade unions appear to have a legitimate role in the relationship which is on the whole accepted by key management and trade union players. However, the union role has a low profile amongst managers and employees and trade unions lacked the organisation needed for partnership to be effective. Moreover, if trade unions are going to reap the potential rewards of partnership there should be a continuing effort to address the problems of capacity and capability (by increasing the numbers and capability of union representatives) in order to raise the profile and acceptance of the union among management and employees. In addition, there is a requirement for adequate training and support to ensure that these representatives have the attitude, skills and confidence to become effective representatives of the workforce

Secondary metabolites of oil palm isolates of Ganoderma zonatum Murill. from Cameroon and their cytotoxicity against five human tumour cell lines

Three lanostane-type triterpenoids [lanosta-7,9(11),24-trien-3-one 15,26-dihydroxy, lanosta-7,9(11),24- trien-26-oic,3-hydroxy and ganoderic acid y], four steroids[ (22E,24R)-ergosta-7,22-dien-3β,5α.6β-triol, 5α,8α-epidiory (22E,24R-ergosta-6,22-dien-3β-ol, ergosta-5,7,22-trien-3β-ol,7 (ergosterol) and ergosta- 7,22-dien-3β-ol,6] and a benzene derivative (dimethyl phthalate) were isolated from ethyl acetate crude extract of Ganoderma zonatum Murill. of oil palm from Cameroon. Their structures were elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), electron impact ionization mass spectrum experiments (EI-MS) and by comparing with the data reported in literature. The highly oxygenated lanostane triterpenoid - ganoderic acid y- showed moderate cytotoxicity against two human tumour cell lines, SMMC-7721 (liver cancer) and A549 (lung cancer) with IC50 values of 33.5 and 29.9 μM, respectively and no activity on HL-60, MCF-7 and SW480, while lanosta-7,9(11),24-trien-3-one,15;26-dihydroxy and lanosta- 7,9(11),24-trien-26-oic,3-hydroxy, showed no activity. The three lanostane triterpeniods had the same molecular formula, molecular weight, behaviour on the TLC plates, with the same retention factor value of 3 (when petroleum ether-acetone was used in the ratio of 3:1), but with slightly different structures. These compounds have not been reported occurring together from any other species of Ganoderma. Their simultaneous occurrence might thus, serve as a diagnostic chemotaxonomic character for G. zonatum, The 1H NMR data is provided for the first time for lanosta-7,9(11),24-trien-26-oic,3-hydroxy.Key words: Secondary metabolites, Ganoderma zonatum, chemotaxonomic character, cytotoxicity

Review of MAC Unit for Complex Numbers

In Digital Communication, Digital Signal Processor (DSP) is an important block which performs several digital signal processing applications such as Convolution, Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT), Fourier Transform, and so on. Every digital signal processor contains MAC unit. The MAC unit performs multiplication and accumulation processes repeatedly in order to perform continuous and complex operations in digital signal processing. MAC unit also contains clock and reset in order to control its operation. Many researchers have been focusing on the design of advance MAC unit architectures for complex numbers so as to achieve minimum resource utilization and delay

Effects of Catha edulis on kidney and liver function among chewing adults in Meru County, Kenya

Background: Catha edulis chewing is common in Kenya and is a daily activity in Meru. According to the National Authority for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) 2012 drug-use study, there are 1.6 million Catha edulis users in Kenya. The habit of khat chewing is widespread with a deep-rooted socio-cultural tradition in Kenya and as such poses a public health problem. Some studies have been done to investigate the effects of Khat on kidney and liver in animals. However, only a few of these studies have been conducted in human.Objective: To investigate the possible effects of Catha edulis on the levels of various biochemical parameters to assess kidney and liver function.Design: Cross sectional study.Setting: Meru County, Kenya.Subjects: Three hundred and ninety one (198 C. edulis chewers and 193 C. edulis non-chewers)were enrolled in the study.Results: Total bilirubin, direct bilirubin and alkaline phosphatase activity was significantly increased in the serum of Catha edulis consumers than non-consumers. Total protein and creatinine concentration were significantly decreased in the serum of Catha edulis consumers as compared to non-consumers.Conclusion: Catha edulis chewing is not associated with electrolyte imbalance hence no predisposing effect to renal disorders. Chewing C. edulis might not be responsible for kidney damage but might be responsible for liver damage

An economic analysis of socioeconomic variation in the impact of obesity on health and health service use

This thesis examines the relationship between obesity and health and health service use, and whether or not this relationship varies by socioeconomic status (SES). We start by generating hypotheses for this relationship based on a human capital model for health. We conduct a literature review on the topic and generate econometric models to be tested. We then provide an analysis of socioeconomic variation in the relationship between obesity and Health Related Quality of Life (HRQL). The results show that obesity is negatively associated with HRQL and that the negative association is more pronounced in lower SES individuals than higher SES individuals. We then conduct an analysis of socioeconomic variation in the association between obesity and HRQL in individuals with obesity-related comorbidities. The results show that the association between obesity and HRQL is more negative in individuals with these comorbidities than individuals without. Furthermore, it shows that obesity-related comorbidities are associated with greater reductions in HRQL in lower SES groups than in higher SES groups. We also examine SES variation in the impact of obesity on life expectancy and find that obesity increases mortality and reduces life expectancy. We find that the impact of obesity on mortality is more negative in lower SES women than in higher SES women. Mortality does not vary by SES groups in men. We then conduct an analysis of SES variation in the association between obesity and health service use. We use a range of health service indicators and find that obesity is associated with increased use. We also find that obesity will lead to greater use of some services in lower SES groups compared with higher SES groups. The main implication of this thesis is to illustrate that obesity can constitute different challenges across SES groups

Silver containing nanostructures from hydrogen-bonded supramolecular scaffolds

International audienceThe self-organisation of silver-containing hydrogen-bonded rosette assemblies on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surfaces is described. The introduction of silver atoms into the double rosette architecture was achieved using the affinity of silver cations for cooperative π-donors or cyano- functionalities on the double rosettes. Highly ordered 2-D nanorod domains with an inter-row spacing of 4-5 nm oriented in different directions were revealed by tapping-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM). This new and simple strategy for the creation of metal-containing supramolecular nanorod arrays that can act as well-defined surface-immobilized self-assembled scaffolds, will contribute to the development of functionalized nanoarchitectures via bottom-up approaches.The self-organisation of silver-containing hydrogen-bonded rosette assemblies on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surfaces is described. The introduction of silver atoms into the double rosette architecture was achieved using the affinity of silver cations for cooperative π-donors or cyano- functionalities on the double rosettes. Highly ordered 2-D nanorod domains with an inter-row spacing of 4-5 nm oriented in different directions were revealed by tapping-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM). This new and simple strategy for the creation of metal-containing supramolecular nanorod arrays that can act as well-defined surface-immobilized self-assembled scaffolds, will contribute to the development of functionalized nanoarchitectures via bottom-up approaches