Autophagy of Capitalism. A Pandemic Crisis Between Nature and Society

Pandemijska kriza izazvana virusom COVID-19 navodi na promišljanje anatomije i genealogije krize kapitalizma. Postojeća pandemija je tek jedna sekvenca u multiplikaciji različitih kriza. Uvid da je društveni sistem kapitalizma podložan krizi, te da je kriza sastavni deo društvenog ekvilibrijuma odnosno društvene dinamike stavljen je u kontekst biopolitike i biomoći, kao i autofagijski intonirane prirodne i demografske selekcije. COVID-19 kriza tako nameće preispitivanje mehanizama samoregulacije kapitalizma preko koncepta upravljanja krizom i rizicima, kao i preko diskursa ugroženosti i kontrole nad prirodom koja se otela kontroli. Subverzivno dejstvo virusa po društvenu organizaciju i društvenu mobilizaciju može se obuhvatiti virus-teorijom (Baudrillard) koja ugroženost virusom vidi u kontekstu evolucione supremacije visoko diferencirane društvenosti. Time se, između ostalog, dospeva do pitanja o ontološkom statusu krize, kao i o njenoj istorijskoj kontinuiranosti/diskontinuiranosti. Predloženo je promišljanje odnosa krize, pandemije i smrti, odnosno fenomena tanatizacije kapitalizma kao i samog nekrokapitalizma. Posebno je razmotren, u svetlu poslednjih rasprava, problem odnosa prirode i društva u kategorijama postnaturalizma, hibridizacije odnosno prožimanja prirodnog i društvenog koje navodi na pomisao o brisanju razlike između prirode i društva. Diskurs o pandemijskoj krizi neophodno je razumeti kako u svetlu dihotomije priroda- društvo, tako i u svetlu strukturalno određene kapitalističke i neoliberalne potražnje za neograničenim resursima.The pandemic crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus leads to a rethinking of the anatomy and genealogy of the crisis of Capitalism. The current pandemic is just one sequence in the multiplication of different crises The insight social system of capitalism is subject to the crisis, and that the crisis is an integral part of social equilibrium and social dynamics, is placed in the context of biopolitics and biopower, as well as autophagically intoned natural and demographic selection. The COVID-19 crisis thus imposes a re-examination of the mechanisms of selfregulation of Capitalism through the concept of crisis and risk management, as well as through the discourse of vulnerability and control over nature that has spiraled out of control. The subversive effect of viruses on social organization and social mobilization can be encompassed by the virus theory (Baudrilard), which sees the threat of a virus in the context of the evolutionary supremacy of highly differentiated sociability. This leads to the question of the ontological status of the crisis, as well as its historical continuity/discontinuity. It is proposed to rethink the relationship between crisis, pandemic and death, i.e. the phenomenon of tanatization of Capitalism as well as necrocapitalism itself. In the light of recent discussions, the problem of the relationship between nature and society in the categories of postnaturalism, hybridization, i.e. the permeation of the natural and the social, which leads to the idea of erasing the difference between nature and society, has been especially considered. The discourse on the pandemic crisis needs to be understood both in the light of the nature-society dichotomy as well as in the angle of structurally determined capitalist and neoliberal demand for unlimited resources

Povratak strukturalnoj kritici: da li je sinteza kritike i krize ponovo moguća u „kasnom“ kapitalizmu?

Retrospection and transformation of the phenomena of criticism and crisis in social theory in recent decades have led to the weakening and even “illegitimate” renunciation of the said doublet. The paper presents an analysis of the renewal of discourse on criticism/crisis and its effects with special consideration of the possibilities of structural criticism. We included several authors of recent analyses as well as the viewpoints that have led to reconsideration of historical and analytical dynamics of two categories, structure and conjuncture, as a form of analysis of current structural processes in terms of structural analysis and criticism. The paper comprises three parts. The first part is a reflection on the reason criticism and crisis have been subjected to different processes of derogation despite their original connection. In the second part, we show the effects of different ways that crisis has manifested itself in capitalism and explain its dispersive and “non-punctual” modalities. The third part raises the question of chances of reuniting the crisis and “immanent criticism” based on structural criticism, and we further articulate its connections with immanent criticism. Structural criticism is viewed as a connection between immanent criticism and transcendent orientation that is focused on the reconnection between crisis and criticism, the elements related to capitalism.Preispitivanje i transformacija fenomena kritike i krize u društvenoj teoriji su poslednjih de cenija doveli do slabljenja pa i do delegitimacijskog osporavanja navedenog dubleta. U radu se razmatraju mogućnosti obnove diskursa o kritici/krizi s mogućim delatnim učincima, uz poseban osvrt na mogućnosti strukturalne kritike.Različiti autori recentnih analiza se uzima ju u obzir, te se razmatraju stanovišta koja vode do ponovnog razmatranja istorijskog i ana litičkog dinamizma kategorija strukture i konjunkture kao razrade aktuelnih strukturalnih procesa u terminima strukturalne analize i kritike. Rad se sastoji iz tri dela. U prvom delu razmatramo zbog čega su kritika i kriza koje su izvorno spojene podvrgnuti različitim proce sima derogiranja. U drugom delu pokazujemo efekte promene načina ispoljavanja krize u kapitalizmu, tačnije osvetljavamo njenu disperzivne i ne-punktualne modalitete. U trećem delu postavljamo pitanje o šansama ponovnog spajanja krize i kritike na osnovu navigacije strukturalne kritike, nadalje artikulišemo njene veze sa „imanentnom kritikom“. Strukturalna kritika se analizira kao spoj između imanentne kritike i transcendentnog usmerenja koji radi na reconnections between crisis and critique as the elements of relationship to capitalism

Stvaranje azot-monoksida izazvano bradikininom nije dovoljno za indukciju gama-globina

Introduction Hydroxycarbamide, used in therapy of hemoglobinopathies, enhances nitric oxide (NO) production both in primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and human bone marrow endothelial cell line (TrHBMEC). Moreover, NO increases γ-globin and fetal hemoglobin levels in human erythroid progenitors. Objective In order to find out whether simple physiologic stimulation of NO production by components of hematopoietic microenvironment can increase γ-globin gene expression, the effects of NO-inducer bradykinin were examined in endothelial cells. Methods The study was performed in co-cultures of human erythroid progenitors, TrHBMEC and HUVECs by ozone-based chemiluminescent determination of NO and real-time quantitative RT-PCR. Results In accordance with previous reports, the endogenous factor bradykinin increased endothelial cell production of NO in a dose- and time-dependent manner (0.1-0.6 μM up to 30 minutes). This induction of NO in HUVECs and TrHBMEC by bradykinin was blocked by competitive inhibitors of NO synthase (NOS), demonstrating NOS-dependence. It has been shown that bradykinin significantly reduced endothelial NOS (eNOS) mRNA level and eNOS/s-actin ratio in HUVEC (by twofold). In addition, bradykinin failed to increase γ-globin mRNA expression in erythroid progenitors only, as well as in co-culture studies of erythroid progenitors with TrHBMEC and HUVEC after 24 hours of treatment. Furthermore, bradykinin did not induce γ/β globin ratio in erythroid progenitors in co-cultures with HUVEC. Conclusion Bradykinin mediated eNOS activation leads to short time and low NO production in endothelial cells, insufficient to induce γ-globin gene expression. These results emphasized the significance of elevated and extended NO production in augmentation of γ-globin gene expression.Uvod Hidroksikarbamid, koji se koristi u lečenju hemoglobinopatija, podstiče stvaranje azot-monoksida (NO) kako u primarnim ljudskim endotelnim ćelijama pupčane vene (HUVEC), tako i u izmenjenoj endotelnoj ćelijskoj liniji poreklom iz koštane srži (TrHBMEC). Štaviše, NO povećava stvaranje γ-globina i fetalnog hemoglobina u ljudskim progenitorima eritropoeze. Cilj rada Da bismo ustanovili da li jednostavna fiziološka stimulacija stvaranja NO od komponenti mikrosredine hematopoeze može povećati ekspresiju γ-globinskog gena, ispitivali smo efekte bradikinina, već poznatog stimulatora stvaranja NO. Metode rada Studija je izvedena u zajedničkim kulturama ljudskih progenitora eritropoeze sa TrHBMEC ili HUVEC i ispitivana hemiluminiscentnim merenjem NO posredstvom ozona, kao i primenom kvantitativnog RT-PCR na genskom nivou. Rezultati U skladu s prethodnim izveštajima, pokazali smo da endogeni faktor bradikinin povećava stvaranje NO u endotelnim ćelijama na dozno i vremenski zavisan način (0,1-0,6 μM do 30 minuta). Ovo stvaranje NO u HUVEC i TrHBMEC izazvano bradikininom blokirano je od strane konkurentskih inhibitora NO-sintaze (NOS), pokazujući NOS-zavisnost. Utvrdili smo da bradikinin značajno smanjuje stvaranje iRNK endotelne forme NOS (eNOS), kao i odnos eNOS i β-aktina u HUVEC (dvostruko manje). Pored toga, bradikinin ne povećava ekspresiju iRNK γ-globinskog gena ni u zasebnim progenitorima eritropoeze, niti u zajedničkim kulturama progenitora eritropoeze sa TrHBMEC ili HUVEC posle 24 sata tretmana. Bradikinin ne menja ni odnos γ i β globina u zajedničkim kulturama progenitora eritropoeze sa HUVEC. Zaključak Aktivacija eNO_ izazvana bradikininom dovodi do kratkog i malog povećanja NO u endotelnim ćelijama, što je nedovoljno da podstakne ekspresiju gena za γ-globin. Ovi rezultati naglašavaju važnost povećanog i produženog stvaranja NO radi stimulacije ekspresije γ-globina

Efekti IL-17 na funkcionalnu aktivnost ćelija periferne krvi

Interleukin-17 (IL-17) is a proinflammatory cytokine produced mainly by activated CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, while its specific receptor is ubiquitously distributed. The inflammatory capacity of IL-17 is based on its ability to stimulate a wide range of stromal cells to produce and release a number of proinflammatory mediators, some with a known impact on hematopoiesis particularly granulopoiesis. Recent data indicate a role for IL-17 in the pathogenesis of several inflammatory diseases, transplant rejection and tumor growth. The purpose of this study was to determine functional responses including the respiratory burst, nitric oxide (NO) production, adhesiveness and metabolical activity/viability of human peripheral blood leukocytes (total white blood cells, mononuclear cells and granulocytes) from healthy donors in the presence of recombinant human (rh)IL-17. The obtained results showed that rhIL-17 did not induce significant changes in the respiratory burst, NO production, and metabolical activity of each peripheral blood cell fraction the tested, while a slight increase in phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) stimulated adhesiveness of granulocytes and mononuclear cells was noted. The absence of significant changes in tested functional activities of various peripheral blood cells suggests that IL-17 does not express its proinflammatory ability in steady-state, since the requirement for its action really does not exist.Interleukin 17 (IL-17) je proinflamatorni citokin koga produkuju aktivirane CD4+ i CD8+ T ćelije, dok je njegov receptor ubikvitarno distribuiran. Inflamatorni kapacitet IL-17 se zasniva na njegovoj sposobnosti da stimuliše širok spektar stromalnih ćelija da produkuju i oslobađaju različite proinflamatorne medijatore, među kojima neki imaju efekte na hematopoezu posebno granulopoezu. Dosadašnji podaci ukazuju na ulogu IL-17 u patogenezi različitih inflamatornih bolesti, odbacivanju transplanta i razvoju tumora. Cilj ovog rada je bio da se odrede funkcionalni odgovori, uključujući respiratorni prasak, produkciju azot monoksida (NO), adhezivnost i metaboličku aktivnost/vijabilnost različitih ćelija periferne krvi (ukupnih leukocita, mononuklearnih ćelija i granulocita) zdravih donora, u prisustvu IL-17. Dobijeni rezultati su ukazali da IL-17 ne dovodi do značajnih promena respiratornog praska, produkcije NO i metaboličke aktivnosti ćelija periferne krvi, ali da uzrokuje blago povećanje forbol-12-miristat-13-acetat (PMA) stimulisane adhezivnosti granulocita i mononuklearnih ćelija. Odsustvo značajnih promena u ispitivanim funkcionalnim aktivnostima različitih ćelija periferne krvi, ukazuje da IL-17 ne eksprimira proinflamatorno dejstvo kod zdravih osoba, jer najverovatnije i ne postoji potreba za njegovim delovanjem

Impact of public passenger transport organization model on system performance and service quality

Organization and management of Public Passenger Transport (PPT) system is a complex process, which significantly impacts the functioning of the system. Globally, there is no unique solution for organization model of PPT, but the organization models are adjusted to the characteristics of each individual area. Organization model of PPT, inherited from the self-management system of the former Socialist Federal Republic (SFR) Yugoslavia, became unsustainable in the Municipality of Inđija (Serbia) and did not fulfil transport needs and demands of passengers regarding the amount of transport and its quality in optimal manner. Old organization model has been replaced by a new modern model, based on positive experiences from developed European cities. Article presents the impact of new organization model of PPT on the work of the system. Research has been conducted in order to determine the state of both old and new system’s organization model by counting and interviewing passengers during years 2008 and 2017. In accordance with the changes made in the system, comparative analysis “before and after changes” has been done along with establishing of the effects of changes on functioning of the system and service quality. Results show significantly improved service quality, while transport demands increase by 38.3%

Primena neravnotežne plazme u medicini

The potential of plasma applications medicine, the connections to nanotechnologies and the results obtained by our group are reviewed. A special issue in plasma medicine is the development of the plasma sources that would achieve non-equilibrium at atmospheric pressure in an atmospheric gas mixture with no or only marginal heating of the gas, and with desired properties and mechanisms that may be controlled. Our studies have shown that control of radicals or chemically active products of the discharge, such as ROS (reactive oxygen species) and/or NO, may be used to control the growth of the seeds. Simultaneously, a specially designed plasma needle and other sources were shown to be efficient to sterilize not only colonies of bacteria but also plank- tonic samples (microorganisms protected by water) or bio films. Finally, it was shown that a plasma might induce differentiation of stem cells. Non-equilibrium plasmas may be used in detection of different specific markers in medicine. For example proton transfer mass spectroscopy may be employed in the detection of volatile organic compounds without their dissociation and thus as a technique for instantaneous measurement of the presence of markers for numerous diseases.U ovom radu dat je pregled primene plazme u medicini, povezanost sa nanotehnologijama i rezultate na ovom polju koje je postigla naša grupa. Poseban problem u plazma medicini je razvoj izvora plazme koji bi radili u neravnotežnim uslovima na atmosferskom pritisku i u smeši gasova kakva je u atmosferi uz zanemarljivo grejanje gasa i sa željenim karakteristikama koje se mogu podešavati po želji. Naša istraživanja su pokazala da se kontrola prisustva radikala i drugih hemijski aktivnih čestica kao što su reaktivne kiseonične čestice (ROS) i/ili NO, može koristiti za kontrolu klijanja semenki. U isto vreme je dokazano za posebno konstruisanu plazma iglu da može efikasno da steriliše ne samo kolonije bakterija već i planktonske uzorke (mikroorganizme zaštićene vodom) pa i biofilmove. Na kraju, mi smo pokazali da plazma može da indukuje diferencijaciju matičnih ćelija. Neravnotežna plazma se može koristiti za detekciju raznih specifičnih markera u medicini. Na primer masena spektroskopija na bazi izmene protona može da se koristi za detekciju isparivih organskih jedinjenja bez njihove disocijacije i na taj način se može ostvariti trenutna detekcija markera za brojne bolesti iz daha

Позитрон - 20

Представљамо вам преглед важних дешавања на Хемијском факултету у протекла три месеца, међу које се убраја и избор новог декана, проф. др Горана Роглића. Како су недеље иза нас и даље обележене пандемијом, доносимо вам приче којима је управо то заједничко. Читајте како су се снашли овогодишњи дипломци, о КОВИД пројекту на Катедри за биохемију, али и о томе шта нас чека у предстојећем семестру у оквиру онлајн наставе (упознајте платформу Teams). О алумнистима сте већ чули, и овог пута вам доносимо још један занимљив разговор. У претходном броју смо започели причу о томе шта је потребно да постанете теоретичар завере, а други део интерјвуа са др Оливером Тошковићем можете прочитати у овом броју. Писали сте нам! Ако се питате шта је то микроинкапсулација или како су повезани уметност и хемија, ово издање часописа има одговоре за вас. Један недавно дипломирани хемичар дели са нама своје искуство о студирању на Хемијском факултету. Доцент др Милан Николић започиње могућу нову рубрику у којој упознајемо професоре и асистенте кроз музику коју слушају

The effect of a plasma needle on bacteria in planktonic samples and on peripheral blood mesenchymal stem cells

In this paper, we study the application of a plasma needle to induce necrosis in planktonic samples containing a single breed of bacteria. Two different types of bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) and Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), were covered in this study. In all experiments with bacteria, the samples were liquid suspensions of several different concentrations of bacteria prepared according to the McFarland standard. The second system studied in this paper was human peripheral blood mesenchymal stem cells (hPB-MSC). In the case of hPB-MSC, two sets of experiments were performed: when cells were covered with a certain amount of liquid (indirect) and when the cell sample was in direct contact with the plasma. Most importantly, the study is made with the aim to see the effects when the living cells are in a liquid medium, which normally acts as protection against the many agents that may be released by plasmas. It was found that a good effect may be expected for a wide range of initial cell densities and operating conditions causing destruction of several orders of magnitude even under the protection of a liquid. It was established independently that a temperature increase could not affect the cells under the conditions of our experiment, so the effect could those hPB-MSC that were not protected by a liquid, gas flow proved to produce a considerable effect, presumably due to poor adhesion of the cells, but in a liquid the effect was only due to the plasma. Further optimization of the operation may be attempted, opening up the possibility of localized in vivo sterilization

Kultivacija matičnih i progenitorskih ćelija hematopoeze iz kostne srži hrčka

Hamster, a hibernating animal, is an important experimental model in research on the influence of hypothermia on different physiological processes. A simple procedure for cultivation and identification of hamster hematopoetic stem cells (HSC) and hematopoetic progenitor cells (HPC) is a premise for a successful investigation upon hypothermia effects on hematopoiesis. The aim of this work was to evaluate the utilization of commercially available methylcellulose media (MC) and recombinant mouse and human cytokines for hamster HSC and HPC assays, in order to enable further studies on these cells. Hamster bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMNC) were plated in MC containing cytokines that support mouse or human HPC growth. Also, BMMNC were resuspended in cytokine supplemented liquid media and incubated for 5 weeks with a four day monitoring of viable cell number. We demonstrated that hamster hematopoietic progenitor cells committed for erythroid lineage and myeloid lineage successfully formed recognizable colonies in both mouse and human MC, while multipotent progenitor cells formed colonies only in mouse MC. We also defined conditions for the evaluation of hamster HSC activity in liquid cultures, based on continuous 5 weeks HSC proliferation. The obtained results verify the utilization of mouse specific MC for further research on hamster HPC biology during hypothermia.Fiziološka hibernacija u koju hrčci ulaze prilikom izlaganja niskim temperaturama, čini ove životinje zanimljivim eksperimentalnim modelom za ispitivanje hematopoeze u uslovima hipotermije. Preduslov za ovo ispitivanje je postojanje jednostavne metode za kultivaciju i identifikaciju hematopoetskih ćelija hrčka. Cilj ovog rada je bio da se ispita mogućnost kultivacije progenitorskih ćelija hematopoeze hrčka u kompletnoj metil celulozi dizajniranoj za kultivaciju mišijih i humanih hematopoetskih ćelija, kao i da se odrede optimalni uslovi za kultivaciju matičnih ćelija hematopoeze hrčka u tečnoj kulturi. Mononuklearne ćelije kostne srži hrčka su posađene u metil celulozu i u tečnu kulturu. Oba medijuma su sadržala kombinacije rekombinantnih mišijih i/ili humanih citokina. Kolonije progenitorskih ćelija opredeljenih za mijelopoezu i opredeljenih za eritropoezu su se formirale u metil celulozi dizajniranoj za kultivaciju mišijih i humanih hematopoetskih ćelija, dok su se primitivnije kolonije sastavljene od oba tipa ćelija (mijeloidna i eritrocitna loza) formirale samo u metil celulozi dizajniranoj za kultivaciju mišijih hematopoetskih ćelija. Osim toga, populacija matičnih ćelija hematopoeze hrčka je proliferisala u tečnim kulturama tokom 5 nedelja bez znakova opadanja proliferativnog potencijala. Ova istraživanja pokazuju da se primenjene metode mogu uspešno koristiti za ispitivanje hematopoeze kod hrčka

Proinflammatory Cytokine IL-6 and JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway in Myeloproliferative Neoplasms

The recent JAK1/2 inhibitor trial in myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) showed that reducing inflammation can be more beneficial than targeting gene mutants. We evaluated the proinflammatory IL-6 cytokine and JAK-STAT signaling pathway related genes in circulating CD34(+) cells of MPNs. Regarding laboratory data, leukocytosis has been observed in polycythemia vera (PV) and JAK2V617F mutation positive versus negative primary myelofibrosis (PMF) patients. Moreover, thrombocytosis was reduced by JAK2V617F allele burden in essential thrombocythemia (ET) and PMF. 261 significantly changed genes have been detected in PV, 82 in ET, and 94 genes in PMF. The following JAK-STAT signaling pathway related genes had augmented expression in CD34(+) cells of MPNs: CCND3 and IL23A regardless of JAK2V617F allele burden; CSF3R, IL6ST, and STAT1/2 in ET and PV with JAK2V617F mutation; and AKT2, IFNGR2, PIM1, PTPN11, and STAT3 only in PV. STAT5A gene expression was generally reduced in MPNs. IL-6 cytokine levels were increased in plasma, as well as IL-6 protein levels in bone marrow stroma of MPNs, dependent on JAK2V617F mutation presence in ET and PMF patients. Therefore, the JAK2V617F mutant allele burden participated in inflammation biomarkers induction and related signaling pathways activation in MPNs